With Disney, beautiful beaches and no income taxes, Florida seems like heaven on Earth!
But what if you live in Florida but travel to a neighboring state for work? Well, working in a state with an income tax while living in Florida means you’ll have to pay taxes to the state you earn your income from.
For Florida residents, working in a bordering state such as Georgia, Alabama or Mississippi, you’ll have to pay tax only on the income you received there. To report this, you will file a non-resident return for the state you work in when filing your taxes.
I Live in Florida and Work in Georgia
According to the Georgia Department of Revenue website, non-residents who work in Georgia or receive income from a Georgia source…
“…are required to file a Federal income tax return and required to file a Georgia income tax return… If you are a legal resident of another state, you are not required to file a Georgia income tax return if your only activity for financial gain or profit in Georgia consists of performing services in Georgia for an employer as an employee when the compensation for services performed does not exceed the lesser of five percent of the income received in all places during the taxable year or $5,000.”
That means if you have income from a job, rental income, income from entities (trusts, estates, partnerships, s-corporations, LLCs) in Georgia, then plan on filing a non-resident tax return for the state and pay Georgia taxes for that income.
Georgia Income Tax Rates (single filers):
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1% on the first $750 of income
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2% on income between $751 and $2,250
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3% on income between $2,251 and $3,750
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4% on income between $3,751 and $5,250
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5% on income between $5,251 and $7000
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6% on income over $7,000
Georgia Income Tax Rates (joint filers):
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1% on the first $1,000 of income
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2% on income between $1,001 and $3,000
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3% on income between $3,001 and $5,000
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4% on income between $5,001 and $7,000
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5% on income between $7,001 and $10,000
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6% on income over $10,000
I Live in Florida and Work in Alabama
If you’re a Florida resident but travel to Alabama for work, you are liable to pay Alabama taxes on the income earned in the state and file a non-resident return for Alabama. According to Alabama’s website, you must file a non-resident Alabama return…
“If you received taxable income from Alabama sources or for performing services within Alabama and your gross income from Alabama sources exceeds the allowable prorated personal exemption. Nonresidents must prorate the personal exemption. If your Alabama gross income exceeds the prorated amount, a return must be filed.”
Alabama Income Tax Rates (single filers):
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2% on first $500 of income
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4% on income between $501 and $3000
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5% on income over $3000.
Alabama Income Tax Rates (joint filers):
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2% on first $1,000 of income
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4% on income between $1,001 and $6,000
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5% on income over $6,000.
I Live in Florida but Work in Mississippi
Florida residents traveling to Mississippi will have to file a non-resident return for Mississippi. According to Mississippi’s website , non-resident filers must;
“Include all income on your Mississippi non-resident return. If you perform services partly in and partly out of the state, only the wages you paid for the services performed in Mississippi are subject to Mississippi income tax. The W-2 forms issued to you from your employer(s) should indicate the state in which the wages were paid, along with the wages you earned in that state.”
Mississippi Income Tax Rates (single filers):
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3% on first $5,000 of income
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4% on income between $5,001 and $10,000
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5% on income over $10,000.
Filing a joint tax return for Mississippi? The rates will remain the same.
Avoid confusion and file with RapidTax
Interstate taxation can get confusing, especially if you live in a state without an income tax, like Florida. The general rule of thumb is that you will have to file a non-resident return in the state you worked in but did not live in and report only the income earned in that state.
If you’re a Florida Resident, you’ll need to file your federal taxes. If you worked in states outside of the Florida lines, don’t forget to file a non-resident return for those states.
Hello I have a question I Worked in New York City I just Recently moved to The state of Florida . I know you don’t pay state taxes in Florida . My question is if I file my taxes in the state of Florida will I Receive both my Federal and state taxes back ?
The income that you earned in New York City will be subjected to taxes, as all income earned in a state and city. However, any income that you earn in the state of Florida, will not be subjected to any further taxes aside from the Federal government.
I have rental incom in Connecticut I have 2homes one in conn and one in Florida I am register permanent resin ten in Florida do I still pay stare tax in conn
Any income earned in another state is subjected to taxation by that specific state. You will need to proceed with filing a non-resident return with CT to report the rental income earned for the year.
Hello. I’m a resident of Florida, but I’m an independent contractor (sales rep) for a company in Georgia. What does this mean for me in terms of tax?
Your income earned in another state will be subjected to non-resident taxes, so you may need to file a non-resident tax return with GA when it comes time to file.
I purchased a property and moved from Georgia to Florida in February 2017. My job is located right over the border in Georgia, where I have been working since February 23rd. I still own a home in Georgia and I have not yet claimed residency in Florida, but plan to do so at the beginning of 2018. Thus, I am confused as to which state I will need to pay 2017 taxes to. I was unemployed at the very beginning of 2017, and collected unemployment benefits until I began my new job on February 23, 2017.
I would greatly appreciate advise regarding my situation. Thank you in advance for your help.
Because you did not claim residency in Florida, or show an indication of a residency change, you may need to file a full year resident tax return form with Georgia for the year. This means that all of your income earned in 2017 will be subjected to taxes in the state of GA. Because the state of Florida does not have a tax on income earned, a filing is not required.
Hi, I am a resident of Maryland and started working remotely for a company based in Florida. Also, I travel a lot for work (each week I would sometimes visit 2-4 states). I just noticed on my paycheck that they are not withholding state income tax. It is stated there that I am a FL resident and worked 100% in FL as well. I have Federal Income Tax withheld together with taxes for social security and medicare. I don’t want to owe anybody and want to make sure I pay the right taxes too. With this, I believe I would need to inform my employer/file the proper tax when the time comes…please advise if I am correct with my understanding on this matter..Thanks!!!
Hello John,
Correct, please inform your employer that you are not a Florida Resident. Be advised, this would not prompt them to withhold MD taxes as they are based in FL and are not required to implement MD withholding procedures. Ideally in your situation, you would file a Resident MD return and pay MD taxes through your tax return.